Conspiracy theorists claim Trump's attempted assassination was 'staged' using FAKE BLOOD
- The posts appeared shortly after Trump was shot
- One died and two were critically injured
- READ MORE: All the latest in the Trump shooting
It took just minutes for anti-Donald Trump conspiracy theorists to claim the shooting was 'staged' to boost his electoral prospects.
The first posts appeared on X as agents were whisking Trump from the scene of his Pennsylvania rally blood running down the right side of his face.
In the hours after Saturday's night shooting, 'staged' was the fourth ranked search term on Google, followed by Trump, Secret Service, and Antifa – before law enforcement had even confirmed the identity of the gunman.
Blood is seen coming from Donald Trump's ear, where he said he was shot. Trolls online claimed the event was staged immediately after it happened
Some X users hung their theories on the defiant images of Trump after the shooting. 'This is such a perfect photo its hard to believe it is not staged. Photo of the decade. Absolutely incredible.
'Do you think the Trump shooting was staged?' asked one X user shortly after the incident.
'If you don't think that s*** was staged? Look at how fast they got Trump outta there at just the mention of someone in the crowd having a gun in 2016. Then look at this goofy as s***,' wrote another user with nearly 2,000 followers, based on the Secret Service's rapid response to the incident.
Another user couldn't believe Trump's response to the attack.
'Trump getting shot was completely staged. He wouldn't stop looking in that direction. Obviously someone who could make that shot wouldn't miss if they were intending to kill him. Then he got up and raised his hand. He would have shit his pants if this was real. Staged.
'Repost if you think this was staged,' wrote another user whose handle was simply Brittney.
The identities of the accounts trolling Trump could not be immediately confirmed.
Kevin Rojek, special agent in charge of FBI Pittsburgh field office, called the shooting an 'assassination attempt' on Saturday night.
'This evening, we had what we are calling an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. It's still an active crime scene,' he told reporters.
Trump defiantly clenched his fist moments after he was shot, even as Secret Service agents surrounded him to block him from other potential threats. He yelled 'fight, fight, fight' to his supporters.
Some Trump allies quickly claimed surviving what the FBI called an assassination attempt would help him.
'President Trump survives this attack — he just won the election,' Rep.Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) told Politico.
